Over the years the Community Economic Development Project (CED) has provided:
- Approximately 150 nonprofit organizations with pro bono counsel for ongoing legal representation.
The following are the stories of some of the nonprofits we have matched with pro bono legal counsel:
CentroNia
With over 100 employees and a 75,000-square-foot facility in Columbia
Heights, CentroNia serves 600 children and their families through numerous
programs: daycare and after-school care, training and professional development
for childcare providers, family literacy and health programs, and comprehensive
social services offered through the Family Institute. All are aimed
at fulfilling CentroNia’s mission of creating a community of learning
for children, youth, families, and staff.
When the former Bell Atlantic Company donated a four-story building to CentroNia, it was an unparalleled opportunity to transform the former corporate edifice—boarded up for several years—into a viable community resource. By relocating to a larger location, CentroNia could generate additional revenue by subleasing space to for-profits and nonprofits. They would also expand programs, create new ones, and accommodate a growing staff. In addition to the renovation issues, CentroNia knew it would face a range of legal questions in tax, corporate, and employment law.
Through a CED Project match CentroNia was eventually paired with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. “Prior to the match, I was able to find someone ‘here or there’ to do pro bono work,” says Beatriz Otero, executive director and founder of CentroNia. “Our volunteer attorney has now worked with us for five years. Having someone with that close-up view of the organization and the legal knowledge he possesses has been invaluable.”
The work that Gibson Dunn attorneys have completed for CentroNia runs the gamut—from reviewing contracts and the organization’s bylaws to crafting personnel policies and general strategic advice. Along the way, CentroNia has expanded tremendously and brought many positive changes to its community. The center’s presence in the neighborhood has increased the availability of quality, affordable childcare, provided employment opportunities, and professional development opportunities. CentroNia’s Professional Development Institute offers a Child Development Associate (CDA) Certification course and has trained hundreds of CDA’s under a contract with the District government.
“We still would have expanded, but we would have tripped more along the way and it would have been very expensive. Having had consistent pro bono legal counsel is one of the reasons that we’re well run. The CED Project helps protect our funder’s investment in the organization.”
Cultural Tourism D.C.
The District is known for its monuments and political landmarks, but
the city’s diverse culture outside the realm of traditional points
of interest often goes unseen by tourists. Cultural Tourism D.C. was
founded in 1996 to expose visitors to the District’s hidden cultural
treasures and sponsors projects directing tourists to underserved neighborhoods
of historical significance. The organization conducts tours throughout
the city, from the U Street corridor—an area once frequented
by legendary jazz performer Duke Ellington and home to the nation’s
only monument to black Civil War soldiers—to East of the River
where visitors can find the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, the only national
park in the nation devoted to aquatic plants.
To promote this new neighbored-based tourism, Cultural Tourism D.C. needed legal assistance with a wide range of intellectual property law issues. The CED Project matched them with Pepper Hamilton LLP and the firm has provided general counsel since 2000. Cultural Tourism D.C.’s staff says much of the organization’s work would not be possible without Pepper Hamilton’s help because the work requires them to operate in the business world, and Pepper Hamilton’s help has made that possible.
The organization believes that Cultural Tourism D.C. is changing the way the city is marketed as a cultural destination. The Washington Convention and Tourism Coalition focuses on groups that fill the Convention Center, such as trade associations and expositions. Cultural Tourism D.C., however, focuses on individual visitors. They link the District’s arts and heritage organizations with city marketers to include less-traditional points of attractions in tour packages, helping to keep tourism dollars in the city longer. Smith says that this has been especially important since September 11th. Cultural Tourism D.C. notes that for every hotel room rented, .5 people have work for the day.
Without the CED Project’s match with Pepper Hamilton, Cultural Tourism D.C. would have forgone some valuable projects or would have tried to do them without legal help. Much of what Cultural Tourism D.C. does is collaborative. They work with the city, the Washington Convention and Tourism Corporation, Metro, and the Chamber of Commerce, among other groups. They also plan events with our 125 member organizations, including museums and other cultural institutions in the city. Pepper Hamilton’s work has made it possible to engage in these collaborations.
Building Bridges East of the River
In 2002 Building Bridges East of the River, a tax-exempt organization, was in the process of developing a $27 million 110,000-square-foot multiservice facility, and its limited legal budget was exhausted.
The nonprofit’s project was located east of the Anacostia River in Ward 8, the long-troubled and neglected southeast corner of the city. Situated in a ward where there is a higher proportion of children and poverty than the District as a whole, the center, entitled the Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Center (THE ARC), would house nonprofit arts, educational, social services, and recreational organizations. The goal was to provide a safe haven for the 7,000 children that live within a one-mile radius of the facility. The campus would also provide social service support, health services, job training, and a computer center to the adults in the neighborhood.
Through the CED Project, the law firm of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP stepped in as pro bono counsel to provide the legal expertise to get this impressive and complex project through the District’s zoning and public hearing process. In addition, the firm worked out lease and occupancy agreements with all of the nonprofit service providers, which include the Boy and Girls Clubs, The Levine School of Music, The Washington Ballet, and Children’s Hospital.
Building Bridges indicated that without pro bono legal assistance, this project would not have moved forward. Opened in 2005, THE ARC has provided a bridge for east of the river residents to benefit from the services that the entire District enjoys.
